Remodeling projects, e.g. remodeling of cabinets, are initiated for a variety of reasons, including, but not limited to, organizational improvement, ease of access to cabinet contents, addressing physical limitations and pain from bending while locating and removing hard to reach items. While one approach is removal and replacement of all cabinets, retrofitting existing cabinets is a popular cost-effective solution.
Goals associated with remodeling existing cabinets include: easy access to items in the kitchen, pantry, bathroom, garage or anywhere else a cabinet exists, improving organization, improving accessibility, reducing stress.
A particular problem in kitchen remodeling involves the storage and access to large appliances, e.g. a mixer. Since it is generally desirable to reduce countertop clutter, storage/removal of a heavy mixer in a below-the-waist cabinet can lead to physical problems, e.g. back pain, as well as increasing the potential for accidents, e.g. dropping the mixer on one's foot. A need exists for a solution for ease of storing a heavy appliance, the subsequent access to that heavy appliance, and the transfer of the heavy appliance to a countertop.
Existing appliance lifts mount to the sides of the inside of a cabinet and do not move out of the cabinet before starting to travel upwards. This configuration means that the base cabinet cannot have an existing drawer and must have cabinet sides. These stipulations make it very difficult to retrofit an existing base cabinet.
Existing market devices require a full height cabinet without a drawer below the countertop to work and the cabinet must have two sides.
Previous solutions utilize a path of motion that is primarily limited to a circular arc, translating through an arc typically less than 90 degrees,
The prior art depicts solutions that are not housed in a frame and are not self-supporting. The mounting of such devices has limited structural load bearing due to the torque generated by the cantilevered loads only being supported by the opposing torque generated by the mounting bolts on the mounting bracket.
There exists a need to move kitchen appliances and like items from storage in cabinets to countertop locations for use, and back. As some of these items may be of a substantial weight and size to make it difficult for individuals to conveniently and safely do this a solution designed to assist this process is needed. Prior art has attempted to fulfill this need but with compromise and limitations.
Related patents known in the background art include the following:                U.S. Pat. No. 7,055,802, issued to Jones et al. on Jun. 6, 2006, which discloses an appliance lift tool.        U.S. Published Patent Application 2009/0180843, inventor Jackson, et al., published on Jul. 16, 2009, discloses kitchen counter island riser.        U.S. Pat. No. 2,543,485, issued to Briggs on Feb. 27, 1951, which discloses a suspension for cabinet ironers;        U.S. Pat. No. 2,822,229 issued to Carlson on Feb. 4, 1958, which discloses a swinging shelf support; and        U.S. Published Patent Application 2007/0018545, inventor Calafria, published on Jan. 25, 2007 discloses a storage bin with lifting mechanism.        
The foregoing patent information reflects the state of the art of which the inventor is aware and is tendered with a view toward discharging the inventor's acknowledged duty of candor in disclosing information that may be pertinent to the patentability of the technology described herein. It is respectfully stipulated, however, that the foregoing patent and other information do not teach or render obvious, singly or when considered in combination, the inventor's claimed invention.